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$161 Million School Property Growth Plan For Canterbury

Hon Erica Stanford
Minister of Education

The Government’s responding to rapid population growth in Canterbury with a $161 million investment into school property, delivering close to 2,500 student places in the region’s growing school network.

“The Selwyn community has been loud and clear, they don’t have enough classroom space to keep up with demand. We are acting decisively to address this through a comprehensive growth plan to provide certainty and ensure more children can flourish,” Ms Stanford said.

A $108 million investment in Selwyn will deliver a new school with 12 classrooms, 52 classrooms at existing schools, and the purchase of a new site for a future new school.

“We are committing a further $53 million to add 51 new classrooms, including a new school in the wider Canterbury region to meet the growing student population,” Ms Stanford says.

“Delivering this scale of projects in Canterbury was made possible by the Government driving efficiencies in school property delivery. The use of standardised building designs, offsite manufacturing, and streamlining procurement have lowered the average cost of a classroom by 28%. This has allowed 30% more classrooms to be delivered last year compared to the year before.

“All Kiwi kids deserve to thrive at school, that starts with warm, safe and dry classrooms. Our priority is getting spades in the ground as soon as possible so schools, families and communities have certainty and benefit sooner,” Ms Stanford says.

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